On the fifth anniversary of the US government declaring that Assad must go, the battle for Aleppo rages and major political and military realignments are in the works. Syria bombed Kurdish security forces (Ayaysh), with US commandos nearby. The US scrambled fighter jets, warned Syria, and now patrol that airspace. Russia has increased airstrikes and is using an air base in Iran.

Russia is also deploying a combat ship to the Gulf of Aden. There are unconfirmed reports of US nuclear weapons moving from Turkey to Romania.

_ Turkish prime minister Cavusoglu said: “It seems to us that NATO members behave in an evasive fashion on issues such as the exchange of technology and joint investments. Turkey intends to develop its own defense industry and strengthen its defense system. In this sense, if Russia were to treat with – this with interest, we are ready to consider the possibility of cooperation in this sector.” When asked about this, State Dept. spokesman John Kirby said the US has no concerns about this kind of bilateral agreement between Turkey and Russia, and Turkey remains an important part of NATO.

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